Coach: McGregor still champ, regardless of stakes in Ferguson-Nurmagomedov
Whatever happens at UFC 223, the lightweight crown remains Conor McGregor's, longtime coach John Kavanagh says.
In a Thursday Q-and-A on Facebook, the SBG Ireland head man said that whether Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov fight for the former's interim crown or the undisputed title McGregor may soon be stripped of on April 7, neither contender can call himself the world's preeminent lightweight until they've squared off with his prized pupil.
"I think regardless of what way it's sold, this fight, I think it's still going to be known who the champion is. I know that's going to upset a lot of people, but there we go. That's my opinion on it," Kavanagh said.
"If it happens that they fight each other, and if it happens that it's for the belt, they're both going to at night thinking to themselves, 'I've got to beat Conor to be really seen as the champ.' That's how I see it."
McGregor has yet to defend his lightweight title and hasn't taken the cage in 14 months, prompting UFC president Dana White to threaten to strip the Irishman should he remain inactive until the fall. But even if McGregor is beltless by UFC 223, Kavanagh believes the emphatic stoppage he scored at Eddie Alvarez's expense to win the strap in November 2016 speaks for itself.
"You look at the way Conor won that belt, he didn't decision someone or edge out someone. In that fight (with Alvarez), no one can look at that fight and say it wasn't completely one-sided. It wasn't in any way a close fight. Conor won that belt with an exclamation mark, with a statement. He is the champion. He is the lightweight champion, and that's that."
As for who he sees taking UFC 223's headliner, Kavanagh didn't appear impressed with either fighter's striking, but predicted the Russian sambo man would remain undefeated - if they even make it to the cage at Brooklyn's Barclays Center, that is.
"They're both grapplers for starters; neither has really high-level striking, so it's going to be a grappling match. I think a lot of it will be played with Khabib on top. I think he wins a decision. I think it goes the five rounds, I think it's a decision to Khabib. I do think there's a really high risk of it not happening. It's been scheduled twice, and it's not happened twice. It's very impressive what Khabib can do when he is fighting - just that pace he has and the relentless pressure. But it does require you to train in a certain way that brings on injuries.
"I would see a high likelihood of one of them pulling out before the fight happens. But let's assume both get through the training camps, both are healthy, and the fight happens and it's five rounds. I think Tony will have his moments in the first round or two, where he's close with some guillotines maybe, or some triangles. But I think Khabib powers out of them and wears him down. I don't think he really has the stopping power to really finish him."
- With h/t to MMAjunkie